As always, upon leaving down under for the land of the rising sun I had little expectation from my journey to Japan other than to take in, observe, osmose if you like, some of the knowledge, skill, experience and that indefinable essence that reverberates through the clinics of those who practise the art of Traditional Acupuncture and Moxibustion. 

This was to be a learning journey, the objective, to refine and develop my capacity to practise Traditional Japanese Medicine.

Traditional Japanese Medicine is a term concocted to acknowledge the source of this medical art/science, Chinese Classics such as the Su Wen, Ling Shu, Nan Jing and Shang Han Lun, whilst recognising that the Japanese have been practising Acupuncture and Moxibustion for almost 1500 years and have refined many of the clinical techniques.

In 2001 Masakazu Ikeda sensei continues to practise Traditional style Acupuncture and Moxibustion and has dedicated himself to the preservation, indeed the expansion of this extraordinary style of medical treatment.

This man is a teacher to many, including myself and is the primary reason for my visit to Japan.

My desire to evolve and learn as a practitioner is fuelled by patients who challenge my understanding and force me to acknowledge my limitations.

To see our patients clearly from head to toe, to visualize and understand the disharmony of the Zang - fu and meridians from the perspective of Traditional Oriental Medicine with absolute clarity, to be able to treat the patient with the highest level of certainty and when I do make the inevitable mistake, recognize it, make the necessary adjustments and continue to develop as a clinician, expand and then maintain higher levels of efficacy.

This is the level of Acupuncture and Moxibustion practise to which I aspire.

My colleague and friend John Thompson a Traditional Acupuncturist in Brisbane, Australia, sums up for me, the relevancy and benefit of direct contact with a master practitioner as distinct from studying from text alone.

After attending Ikeda sensei's From Syndrome to Treatment workshop in November 2000 he constantly reminds me of some level of indefinable change that has occurred in his practice, his patients are very aware of it, continually commenting on the increased strength and effectiveness of treatment yet he struggles to define this change intellectually, describing it as a feeling.

This is not an isolated phenomenon, as I hear similar comments from colleagues regarding a higher level of patient satisfaction both with the results, gentleness and sensitivity of treatment, this obviously translates into an increase in the number of patients.

The uniqueness of the Traditional Japanese Medicine approach to acupuncture might be gleaned from this excerpt from one of Ikeda sensei's published books, The Art of Traditional Acupuncture and Moxibustion Therapy.

' If the practitioner is of great experience, then even if his methods are not so traditional, they will always be worth examination. The so-called "meridian therapy" method places the main emphasis on pulse diagnosis to determine the excess and deficient meridians. Then using classical references such as the 69th chapter of the "Classic of Difficult Issues" point selection is carried out and tonification and dispersion applied to these. This system of identifying the root syndrome or "SHO" in Japanese and treating it is a simple and excellent treatment system.

However when examining old texts written prior to the Edo period (1603-1868), those trained in the meridian therapy method have difficulty in making use of the information. These old texts record the name of the disease and in so doing automatically expressed the aetiology and pathology. For a particular disease name then, generally only the points to be used were recorded, the deficient meridian in question was rarely mentioned.

This causes misunderstandings in two ways. The first is that unfortunately in the meridian therapy system, the technical terms such as liver deficiency, spleen deficiency, kidney deficiency and lung deficiency etc are used without making the relevant pathology, which is of central importance, clearly understood. This causes a gap to open up between this system and the old texts. The second is that the information recorded in the old texts is often mostly concerning the "sectional" or "surface" part of the treatment, with little mention of the "root" treatment. This is believed to be because the root treatment is so obvious that it did not need to be recorded.'

For me, after watching and listening to Ikeda sensei, there can no longer be a substitute for understanding the body in it's entirety from the perspective of Oriental Medicine, from the inside to the outside, from the Yin of the Yin to the Yang of the Yang, thus helping me to establish an understanding and connection with the patient that includes intellect but is not limited by it!

Only fools close their eyes when a door is opened, even if the magnitude of what's on the other side leaves us somewhat breathless and in my case more than a little daunted.

To apply this enormous body of knowledge and understanding to an individual and bring the subsequent clarity and energetic focus to the tip of the finest needle at any given moment, the rewards are apparent and the effort required obvious.

So it was, as I boarded a Qantas flight with my economy class JAL ticket upgraded to Business class, presumably because they knew I was an Acupuncturist, in Cairns, far North Queensland a land of crocodiles, spectacular coral reefs and a group of Traditional Acupuncturists with whom I had the pleasure of spending the weekend with introducing them to the fundamental principles of TJM.

It was a peculiar experience being greeted by one of my students at Narita airport. Paul McLeod had studied with me for a few years, both at College and at my clinic. Upon graduation he packed his bags and headed for Japan to continue his post- graduate education in the same vein I suspect, as he had with his study of the martial arts.

Here was this young man whom I had met on his very first day of study in Acupuncture leading me through the maze of the Tokyo public transport system to his home in Minami Sunamachi, some forty minutes from Sangenjaya and the clinic of one Edward Obaidey, Traditional Acupuncturist and mentor for many Gaijin and Japanese students of Acupuncture.

So for the next two days I was to become a Tokyo commuter, with Paul's unobtrusive guidance we managed to squeeze and I mean squeeze aboard a train at the local subway station bound for Eddy's clinic.

As we strolled into Edward clinic my senses were stirred and memories of previous visits came flooding back.

1996, 1999 and now 2001, I was and remain in awe at the rapid passage of time and how familiar the sounds, smells and sights of this clinic were to me.

Over the next two days I witnessed Traditional Acupuncture, Edward Style, as preying mantis like, Eddy moved  Ki, loosened up, calmed down and recharged the batteries of those lucky souls fortunate enough to stumble upon this oasis of tranquillity amidst the chaos and intensity of Tokyo.

The manner in which Eddy treated the bodily regions of his patients was emphatic, not for this man the limitations of points, meridians or formulas, he is an explorer of the terrains of the human body, his energetic connection with the patient is blatantly obvious and his growth as a practitioner inspirational for those who know him.

During one of my many telephone conversations with Edward last year, he mentioned a particular patient, a Japanese lady who had the misfortune of loosing all of her hair, head, axilla, pubic, eyebrows all gone.(This was not a reaction to chemotherapy nor any sort of heavy - duty medical intervention but the shock of discovering that her son had started smoking cigarettes).

Eddy mentioned that he was treating this patient for a Liver deficiency cold syndrome condition and here I was, six months later, looking at the very same woman, but with a healthy crop of hair upon her head and appropriate bodily places, growing by the moment.

For treatment details please contact Edward Obaidey, Tokyo, Japan, suffice to say that Traditional Acupuncture and Moxibustion is powerful medicine even in today's freaked out society.

So it was that I squeezed aboard yet another subway train and headed for Tokyo's domestic airport at Haneda, bound for Matsuyama the closest airport to Imabari, the home of Ikeda sensei on the island of Shikoku.

Flying south over the main island of Honshu, I gazed in wonder at the mountains, no, at the clouds, no, at Mt. Fuji, no, but at the amazing number of golf courses spread throughout the country, there was hardly a moment when a course was not in view, in fact I was able to count 16 courses in view at one time from my window seat, concluding that Japan is linked by a necklace of golf courses.

From Matsuyama airport I jumped in a taxi to the train station and within two minutes I was travelling to Imabari aboard the express train. This is an unforgettable journey as the railway follows the coast of Shikoku and the sea remains a constant companion on one side and the mountains on the other side.

Within one hour of arriving in Shikoku I was walking through the front door of Ikeda sensei's clinic, after the warmest of greetings from sensei, I was handed over to Tom, a Taiwanese born, Japanese bred and educated post- graduate student whom I had introduced to Ikeda sensei and Edward Obaidey a number of years ago ,he was completing his studies with Ikeda sensei before going into practise in Tokyo and was to be my host for my stay.

Later in the day I had the opportunity to re-acquaint myself with Tonsan and Korosan, senior students at the clinic, I was also introduced to Michiko, a Japanese born resident of England who had been studying with sensei for the past twelve months and was soon to return home to the UK and Susan an American born post graduate student who had recently graduated from Acupuncture college in Tokyo and was commencing a period of training with Ikeda sensei.

As usual the hospitality was extraordinary, around the culinary delights of Imabari and Kirin beer I enjoyed an extremely friendly and convivial first night.

Over the next several days I was again privileged to watch Ikeda sensei in action. His subtle non-intrusive needling technique, the variations in depth, direction and intention when using specific meridians and points, the deft feel of a master practitioner when applying the finishing touches to the various regions of the body, conjuring up the image, for me, of an artist painting a masterpiece in this case each and every patient is the canvas upon which Ikeda sensei applies his skill, combined with an intimate awareness of how he wants the finished article to appear and you have many grateful patients who come to see this man for all varieties of disease and disharmony.

Clinic was very busy, the patients ranging from pregnant women, very young children with colds to aged people suffering from chronic health problems such as Hepatitis and Diabetes all treated in the same relaxed yet completely focused manner.

With the four treatment tables lined up side by side full for a majority of the time it was difficult to count, suffice to say, it was usually well into double figures by lunchtime.

A few days later Dr. Hiramoto from Hiroshima arrived, this young man, a doctor of Western medicine, had come to study with Ikeda sensei to gain an understanding and appreciation of the Traditional Medicine of Japan. Judging by his openness and enthusiasm he may yet influence some of his colleagues to do likewise and thus help create a more balanced approach to health care as we charge into the 21^st century.

There were many highlights to my stay in Imabari, as a practitioner and student, studying with Ikeda sensei always expands my horizons and stimulates a desire to refine, develop and understand all that goes into becoming a master practitioner.

Conversations with Tonsan ably interpreted by either Michiko san or Tom clarified many shady areas of my understanding of the Art and Science of Traditional Acupuncture and Moxibustion.

Socially, evenings with Ikeda sensei, his family and students, playing up with Tom and Michiko san at home or in the restaurants of downtown Imabari listening to' The Beatles Double White album?' yes, you read correctly, the openness and warmth of Tonsan and Korosan san, the commitment of Susan, all small parts of a big picture dedicated to the survival of Traditional Japanese Medicine on this planet.

Driving over the bridges and across the islands that link Shikoku with Honshu, with Ikeda sensei and staff heading towards Hiroshima to give a lecture to the local study group, boarding the vehicular ferry, lunch, a wonderfully illuminating couple of hours talking with Tonsan and Tom, a 2 hour ride on the Bullet train to Osaka then train to Kansai saw me walk through my front door exactly 24 hours after my departure from Imabari.

My gratitude remains, as daily I find myself in clinic in Brisbane and the Gold Coast, Australia, treating many shapes and sizes of human beings with a myriad of health problems with an elevated understanding of the power and subtlety of this amazing form of medicine.